System and method for secure payment transactions during a chat session

ABSTRACT

A method for secure payment transactions over a network between a support help desk computing system and a customer computing system is provided. The method includes establishing a chat session between the help desk and the customer using a chat application program; receiving a purchase order from the customer; communicating a unique URL payment link to the customer, wherein the URL payment link is configured for allowing the customer to establish communication with an order processing system to provide sensitive payment information to the order processing system; receiving the sensitive payment information at the order processing system communicated from the customer; encrypting the sensitive payment information; providing the encrypted sensitive payment information to the help desk, wherein the encrypted sensitive payment information is displayed in a masked format on a display of the help desk; and completing the purchase order using the encrypted sensitive payment information.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims priority under 35 U.S.C. §119(a)-(d) to IndianPatent Application No. 1502/CHE/2014, filed Mar. 20, 2014, which ishereby incorporated by reference in its entirety.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to a system and method for providingsecure payment during a chat session conducted over a network. Moreparticularly, the system and method allows for a secure paymenttransaction for a product or service ordered during the chat session,and more particularly the system and method prevents a customer servicerepresentative of a support desk center from viewing a customer's creditcard information or other personal information provided by the customerin order to complete the transaction during the chat session.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

End customers typically reach out to a customer support desk center to(a) address issues that they are facing with their products; (b) seekinformation on products that they have purchased; or (c) to purchase aservice or product. Customers reach out to support desk centers throughdifferent support channels such as phone, e-mail or chat through anetwork. It is also likely that during the process of a customerinteraction, a customer service representative or associate may be ableto convince a customer to upsell a product or service. In thosecustomer-associate interactions, where there is a need for the customerto purchase something, the resulting transactions are typically handledthrough credit card payments. Traditionally the customer would providethe credit card information to the associate verbally, who would then goahead and complete the order on behalf of the customer. This introducesserious risk because of the exposure of sensitive credit cardinformation to the associate. It is also likely that this information iscaptured as part of the voice quality recording during suchtransactions.

For example, if in need of assistance, a customer may reach a customersupport desk center through online chat. Upon initiation of an onlinechat session, the customer support desk center may assign a chatassociate to engage with the customer. During the chat dialogue, theassociate discusses with customer the underlying issues and, ideallycomes to an understanding of the issue or problem causing the need forthe customer service chat. As the associate is becoming aware to theproblem that the customer is facing or what the customer may require toalleviate the issue, the associate may find the need to sell a productor service plan to customer. Ideally, the product or service can bepurchased through an online sale through billing the customer's creditcard for the required product or service. Generally, to complete a sale,the associate will complete the order details of the product to bepurchased and collects the credit card information from the customerthrough the established chat channel, wherein the customer provides theassociate with the credit card information. The credit card informationis then inputted by the associate and verified thereby completing thesales process and placing the order through customer support deskcenter's (or other third party's) order processing system.

While the above scenario has served customer support services in thepast, there are, however, a number of shortcomings to this approach.First, communicating credit card information through chat is insecureand may be susceptible to malicious activity of identity thieves orother internet hackers. Secondly, the transaction processing is notautomatic and it is time consuming for an associate as all credit cardrelated information is exchanged serially over the chat channel (anindividual chat stream is limited in the number of characters which maybe typed into the chat window). In a more nefarious situation, anunscrupulous associate may intentionally misuse a customer's credit carddetails for personal gain. Alternatively, a customer's credit cardinformation may get recorded through screen recording/capture where itcan then be viewed by people other than associate.

As such, there is a need for a system and method that provides forsecure online credit card transactions through a chat channel wherein acustomer's credit card information is securely transmitted to an orderprocessing system without the need for providing such credit cardinformation to the customer support desk center's associate. Further,there is also a need for a method and system for protecting any othersensitive information communicated over a chat session, such as, but notlimited to, a customer's social security number or bank account numbers.The present invention addresses these and other needs.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In order to overcome the above stated problems, the present invention amethod for secure payment transactions over a network between a supporthelp desk computing system and a customer computing system is provided.In one aspect, the method comprises: establishing a chat session betweenthe support help desk computing system and the customer computing systemthrough the network using a chat application program; receiving apurchase order from the customer computing system during the chatsession; communicating a unique Uniform Resource Locator (URL) paymentlink to the customer computing system during the chat session inresponse to receipt of the purchase order, wherein the URL payment linkis configured for allowing the customer computing system to establishcommunication with an order processing system over the network toprovide sensitive payment information to the order processing system,wherein the sensitive payment information is provided in associationwith the purchase order; receiving the sensitive payment information atthe order processing system communicated from the customer computingdevice; encrypting the sensitive payment information; providing theencrypted sensitive payment information to the support help deskcomputing system, wherein the encrypted sensitive payment information isdisplayed in a masked format on a display of the support help deskcomputing system; and completing the purchase order using the encryptedsensitive payment information.

In another aspect, the method comprises: establishing a chat sessionbetween the support help desk computing system and the customercomputing system through the network using a chat application program;receiving a purchase order from the customer computing system during thechat session, wherein the purchase order is a request to purchase atleast one of a product or a service; receiving non-sensitive paymentinformation from the customer computing system during the chat sessionin response to the purchase order, wherein the non-sensitive personalinformation includes at least one of a customer name, mailing address,billing address, or email address; requesting a unique Uniform ResourceLocator (URL) payment link from the order processing system in responseto the purchase order, wherein the URL payment link is configured forallowing the customer computing system to establish communication withan order processing system over the network to provide sensitive paymentinformation to the order processing system, wherein the sensitivepayment information includes at least one of credit card information,social security number, bank account number, or bank account routingnumber; obtaining the URL payment link from the order processing system;communicating the URL payment link to the customer computing systemduring the chat session; receiving the sensitive payment information atthe order processing system communicated from the customer computingdevice; encrypting the sensitive payment information using the orderprocessing system; providing the encrypted sensitive payment informationto the support help desk computing system, wherein the encryptedsensitive payment information is displayed in a masked format on adisplay of the support help desk computing system; and completing thepurchase order using the non-sensitive and sensitive paymentinformation.

In another aspect, a support help desk computing system for providing asecure payment transaction during a chat session with a customercomputing device is provided. The system comprises a chat applicationprogram, an order processing system, and a display. The chat applicationprogram is configured for establishing a chat session with the customercomputing device over a network, wherein the chat application program isconfigured for receiving a purchase order from the customer computingsystem during the chat session. The order processing system isconfigured for generating a unique Uniform Resource Locator (URL)payment link in association with the purchase order for communication tothe customer computing device during the chat session using the chatapplication program. The URL payment link is configured for allowing thecustomer computing system to establish communication with the orderprocessing system over the network to provide sensitive paymentinformation to the order processing system. The sensitive paymentinformation is provided in association with the purchase order, whereinthe order processing system is configured for encrypting the sensitivepayment information. The order processing system is configured fordisplaying the encrypted sensitive payment information in a maskedformat on the display, and completing the purchase order using theencrypted sensitive payment information.

Additional objects, advantages and novel features of the presentinvention will be set forth in part in the description which follows,and will in part become apparent to those in the practice of theinvention, when considered with the attached figures.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The accompanying drawings form a part of this specification and are tobe read in conjunction therewith, wherein like reference numerals areemployed to indicate like parts in the various views, and wherein:

FIG. 1 generally illustrates a networking environment in which thepresent invention may be implemented including flow diagrams showingcertain aspects of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a schematic flow diagram showing a method in accordance withone aspect of the present invention;

FIGS. 3-12 show exemplary screen shots of a display of a support helpdesk computing system showing a work flow of an order processing system;and

FIG. 13 is a block diagram generally illustrating a computingenvironment in which the invention may be implemented.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

Generally, the tools and methods described herein for providing securepayment for goods or services that are ordered by a customer during achat session may be implemented in hardware, software or a combinationthereof. As will be discussed in more detail below, the system andmethod is configured for preventing a customer service representative ofa support help desk center from viewing or otherwise obtaining acustomer's credit card information or other personal informationprovided by the customer in order to complete the transaction during thechat session.

This document is organized as follows. In the first section, an overviewof the techniques and implementation is provided and is described withreference to some component devices and aspects of the invention. In thenext section, an exemplary algorithm for providing the method inaccordance with one aspect of the present invention is discussed.Finally, an exemplary computer environment for the implementation anduse of the invention is described.

Any exemplary environment or system to which the present invention wouldbe applicable is shown in FIG. 1 and is designated as reference numeral100. The environment 100 may include a network 102, such as a Local AreaNetwork (LAN), Wide Area Network (WAN), the Internet, wireless networkor other similar configuration for allowing communication among two ormore computing devices. Connected to the network 102 may be one or moregeneral purpose computing devices. Computing devices include devicessuch as, but not limited to, a desktop personal computer, laptopcomputer, mobile or handheld device, which may be a wired or wirelessdevice, which may be located in a home, office or other environment.Network 102 is used to place a customer computing system 104 incommunication with a support help desk computing system 106.

Support help desk computing system 106 is operated by and under thecontrol of a business entity that employs or otherwise engages customerservice representatives or associates that are trained to resolve issuesthat customers are facing with respect to products that were purchasedby the customer, provide information to customers on products that thecustomer has purchased, and sell additional services or products tocustomers. Typically, one or more customer service representatives areoperating the support help desk computing system 106.

Customer computing system 104 is operated by a customer that purchased aproduct or service, and which has an issue that needs to be resolvedwith respect to the purchased product or service, is seeking informationabout the purchased product or service, or is seeking to purchase aproduct or service. In the instance that the customer has an issue thatneeds to be resolved with respect to the purchased product or service,or is seeking information about the purchased product or service, it isnot necessarily the case that the customer initially purchased theproduct or service from the business entity in control of the supporthelp desk computing system 106. In some instances, business entitiesthat sell products or services to its customers outsourcetroubleshooting and other post-sale activities to third-party businessentities that specialize in support help desk services. Therefore, itshould be understood that the use of the word “customer” hereinindicates that a product or services was either purchased from thebusiness entity in control of the support help desk computing system 106or purchased from another business entity.

Both customer computing system 104 and support help desk computingsystem 106 may include a chat application program 108, 110 that isconfigured for establishing a chat session 112 over network 102 betweentwo or more computing systems. It should be understood that chatapplication 108, 110 may be stored in a memory of customer computingsystem 104 or support help desk computing system 106, respectively, ormay be a web-driven application that is accessible through network 102.Chat session 112 is configured for allowing for a real-time exchange ofcommunications, typically in the form of text messages, between thecustomer and customer service representative within a chat applicationwindow 114 that appears on a display of both customer computing system104 and support help desk computing system 106. The chat session 112allows the customer to communicate the product or service related issueto the customer service representative, and for the customer servicerepresentative to communicate information to the customer to resolve theissue or fulfill a customer request. Chat session 112 allows thecustomer to communicate to the customer service representative that thecustomer would like to purchase at least one of a product or service,such as, but not limited to, a replacement part for a product, a serviceplan for a product, or a virus protection software program. Thecustomer's communication to the customer service representative duringchat session 112 indicating that the customer would like to make such apurchase is referred to herein as a purchase order.

Support help desk computing system 106 further includes an orderprocessing system 116 configured for completing the purchase order byprocessing payment information provided by the customer using customercomputing device 104. In one aspect, chat application program 110 may bebuilt as a shell or software module within order processing system 116.The payment information that order processing system 116 uses tocomplete the purchase order includes non-sensitive and sensitive paymentinformation. The non-sensitive payment information is provided by thecustomer to the customer service representative during chat session 112.Non-sensitive payment information includes, but is not limited to, thecustomer's name, mailing address, billing address, or e-mail address. Inaccordance with one aspect of the present invention, sensitive paymentinformation is not provided by the customer by entering such informationin chat session 112 using customer computing device so that customerservice representative can view the sensitive payment information inchat session 112 using support help desk computing system 106. Sensitivepayment information includes at least one of, but is not limited to,credit card information, social security number, bank account number, orbank account routing number. Credit card information may include atleast one of a credit card number, credit card expiration date, or athree-digit security code. From the customer's perspective, it is notdesirable to provide sensitive payment information in written formatduring chat session 112 due to the possibility that the sensitivepayment information could be acquired by an unauthorized third party, ormisused by customer service representative.

In accordance with one aspect of the present invention, order processingsystem 116 is configured for generating a unique Uniform ResourceLocator (URL) payment link after the purchase order is communicated bycustomer computing device 104 to support help desk computing device 106during chat session 112. In particular, support help desk computingdevice 106 is used to make a request to order processing system 116 togenerate the unique URL payment link. The URL payment link is unique inthe sense that it is generated specifically with reference to thepurchase order made by the customer computing device 104. Orderprocessing system 116 is configured for providing support help deskcomputing device 106 with the URL payment link so that the URL paymentlink can be provided to and displayed on customer computing device overthe chat session 112. The URL payment link is configured to allow thecustomer to establish communication with order processing system 116using, for example, a separate website browser window, over network 102.Within the separate browser window, customer computing system 104 isused to provide the sensitive payment information required to completethe associated purchase order. The order processing system 116 isconfigured for encrypting the sensitive payment information receivedfrom the customer computing system so that the sensitive paymentinformation is displayed on support help desk computing system 106 in amasked format. The sensitive payment information is displayed in amasked format so that the customer service representative operating thesupport help desk computing system 106 is not able to view or otherwiseobtain the sensitive payment information on the display of the supporthelp desk computing system 106. The masked format can be any format thatdoes not reveal the actual sensitive payment information of thecustomer, such as, for example, replacing the sensitive paymentinformation with one or more asterisks. While the above-referencedencryption process is referred to above as a process of taking thesensitive payment information and placing such information in a maskedformat, it should be understood that the encryption may also,optionally, include a process of further securing the sensitive paymentinformation during the communication from customer computing system 104to order processing system 116, or storage of such data by orderprocessing system 116, using other known encryption techniques, such as,but not limited to, Secure Socket Layer (SSL) encryption, AdvancedEncryption Standard (AES), and the like.

After receiving the non-sensitive and sensitive payment information,order processing system 116 is configured to complete the purchase orderby interacting with a third party business entity to receive payment forthe purchased products or services, for example, through a typicalauthorization-capture credit card transaction, automated clearing house(ACH) transaction, or wire transfer. It will be understood that orderprocessing system 116 may be implemented in hardware, software or acombination thereof to perform the functions described above. Further,while order processing system 116 has been shown and described as beinga component of support help desk computing system 106, it will beunderstood that order processing system 116 may instead be controlled byone or more business entities that is different than the business entitythat controls the support help desk computing system 106. Further, inanother aspect, a system other than order payment processing system 116may be used to generate the URL payment link and perform theabove-referenced functions relating to providing the sensitive paymentinformation in the masked format, while still allowing order processingsystem 116 to complete the purchase order.

Having described an exemplary system 100 in accordance with an aspect ofthe present invention, an exemplary method 200 for a secure paymenttransaction over network 102 between support help desk computing system106 and customer computing system 104 will be now be described withreference to FIGS. 1 and 2. Method 200 includes establishing chatsession 112 between support help desk computing system 106 and thecustomer computing system 104 through the network using chat applicationprogram 110 at step 202. After chat session is established, the customerand customer service representative communicate using chat applicationwindow 114. During chat session 112, the issue or request made by thecustomer is understood by customer service representative, and at leastone of a product or service is either offered to the customer usingsupport help desk computing system 106 or requested by customer usingcustomer computing system 104. This results in the purchase order beingreceived by support help desk computing system 106 from customercomputing device 104 during chat session 112 at step 204.

At step 206, order processing system 116 is accessed by customer servicerepresentative using support help desk computing system 106 by enteringauthorized credentials in a user name data field 300 and a password datafield 302, as best seen in FIG. 3, and then selecting the country inwhich customer is located using a country drop down menu 304, as bestseen in FIG. 4. As best seen in FIG. 5, using order processing system116, the customer service representative using support help deskcomputing system 106 enters information relevant to the product orservice associated with the purchase order, such as a name of theproduct or service 306, quantity of product or service 308, and price ofthe product or service 310. As best seen in FIG. 6, order processingsystem 116 displays on support help desk computing system 106 a seriesof data fields that include non-sensitive payment information 312 andsensitive payment information 314 that need to be provided by thecustomer in order to complete the purchase order. At step 208,non-sensitive payment information is received from customer computingsystem during chat session 112, and customer service representativeenters the received non-sensitive payment information into the datafields 312 as seen in FIG. 7.

In accordance with one aspect of the present invention, order processingsystem 116 displays a secure payment request button 316 on a display ofsupport help desk computing system 106, as best seen in FIG. 7. As bestseen in FIGS. 2 and 7, secure payment request button 316 is clicked bythe customer service representative to request the unique URL paymentlink from order processing system 116 at step 210. In response to step210, as best seen in FIGS. 2 and 8, unique URL payment link 318 isgenerated by order processing system 116, and unique URL payment link318 is displayed on support help desk computing system 106 at step 212.The support help desk computing system 106 is then used to communicateunique URL payment link 318 to customer computing system 104 throughchat session 112 at step 214. For example, support help desk computingsystem 106 may be used to copy unique URL payment link 318 to aclipboard on support help desk computing system 106, and then pastingunique URL payment link 318 into chat session 112 so that unique URLpayment link 318 can be communicated and then viewed by customer in chatapplication window 114 displayed on customer computing system 102.

The customer can then either click unique URL payment link 318 withinchat session 112 to automatically open a customer web applicationbrowser 320, or insert unique URL payment link 318 into customer webapplication browser 320, which places customer computing system 104 incommunication with order processing system 116, as best seen in FIG. 9.As best seen in FIGS. 9-11, customer then proceeds to enter thesensitive payment information 314 using customer web application browser320, and then clicks the submit button 322 to communicate sensitivepayment information 314 to order processing system 116. The sensitivepayment information 314 communicated by customer computing system 104 isreceived by order processing system 116 at step 216. At step 218, thesensitive payment information 314 received by order processing system116 is then encrypted, and then displayed on a display of support helpdesk computing system 106 in a masked format 314 a at step 220, as bestseen in FIG. 12. At step 222, support help desk computing system 106completes the purchase order using the non-sensitive and encryptedsensitive payment information, which results in the customer paying thesupport help desk center for the product or service associated with thepurchase order.

As can be appreciated, the system and method described above overcomesthe above-referenced drawbacks and deficiencies. For example, byproviding a unique URL payment link to the customer, the customer isable to provide the order processing system with the sensitive paymentinformation required to complete the transaction, while at the same timepreventing the sensitive payment information from being displayed to thecustomer service representative during the chat session or whilecompleting the transaction.

Having described the system and method of the present invention and anembodiment thereof, an exemplary computer environment for implementingthe described design and execution is presented next.

FIG. 13 shows an exemplary computing environment 400 that can be used toimplement any of the processing thus far described. For example,computing environment 400 may be representative of customer computingsystem 104 or support help desk computing system 106. Computer 412 maybe a computing device including a system bus 424 that couples a videointerface 426, network interface 428, one or more serial ports 432, akeyboard/mouse interface 434, and a system memory 436 to a CentralProcessing Unit (CPU) 438. A monitor or display 440 is connected to bus424 by video interface 426 and provides the user with a graphical userinterface to view, edit, and provide input during chat session 112 orinformation required to complete the information requested in FIGS. 3-10and 12. The graphical user interface allows the user to enter commandsand information into computer 412 using a keyboard 441 and a userinterface selection device 443, such as a mouse, touch screen or otherpointing device. Keyboard 441 and user interface selection device areconnected to bus 424 through keyboard/mouse interface 434. The display440 and user interface selection device 443 are used in combination toform the graphical user interface which allows the user to implement atleast a portion of the present invention. Other peripheral devices maybe connected to computer through serial port 432 or universal serial bus(USB) drives 445 to transfer information to and from computer 412.

The system memory 436 is also connected to bus 424 and may include readonly memory (ROM), random access memory (RAM), an operating system 444,a basic input/output system (BIOS) 446, application programs 448 andprogram data 450. The computer 412 may further include a hard disk drive452 for reading from and writing to a hard disk, a magnetic disk drive454 for reading from and writing to a removable magnetic disk (e.g.,floppy disk), and an optical disk drive 456 for reading from and writingto a removable optical disk (e.g., CD ROM or other optical media). Thecomputer 412 may also include USB drives 445 and other types of drivesfor reading from and writing to flash memory devices (e.g., compactflash, memory stick/PRO and DUO, SD card, multimedia card, smart mediaxD card), and a scanner 458. A hard disk interface 452 a, magnetic diskdrive interface 454 a, an optical drive interface 456 a, a USB driveinterface 445 a, and a scanner interface 458 a operate to connect bus424 to hard disk drive 452, magnetic disk drive 454, optical disk drive456, USB drive 445 and a scanner 458, respectively. Each of these drivecomponents and their associated computer-readable media may providecomputer 412 with non-volatile storage of computer-readable instruction,program modules, data structures, application programs, an operatingsystem, and other data for the computer 412, such as, but not limited tochat application program 108, 110 and order processing system 116. Inaddition, it will be understood that computer 412 may also utilize othertypes of computer-readable media in addition to those types set forthherein, such as digital video disks, random access memory, read onlymemory, other types of flash memory cards, magnetic cassettes, and thelike.

The system 100 may operate in a networked environment using logicalconnections to establish communication between customer computing system104, support help desk computing system 106, and order processing system116. Network interface 428 provides a communication path 460 between bus424 and network 102, which allows chat messages communicated during chatsession 112, non-sensitive payment information 312, and sensitivepayment information 314 to be communicated through network 102 betweencustomer computing system 104, support help desk computing system 106,and order processing system 116 using computer 412, as described above.This type of logical network connection is commonly used in conjunctionwith a local area network (LAN). Chat messages communicated during chatsession 112, non-sensitive payment information 312, and sensitivepayment information 314 may also be communicated from bus 424 through acommunication path 462 to network 102 using serial port 432 and a modem464. Using a modem connection between customer computing system 104,support help desk computing system 106, and order processing system 116is commonly used in conjunction with a wide area network (WAN). It willbe appreciated that the network connections shown herein are merelyexemplary, and it is within the scope of the present invention to useother types of network connections between customer computing system104, support help desk computing system 106, and order processing system116 including both wired and wireless connections.

From the foregoing, it will be seen that this invention is one welladapted to attain all the ends and objects hereinabove set forthtogether with other advantages which are obvious and which are inherentto the method and apparatus. It will be understood that certain featuresand sub combinations are of utility and may be employed withoutreference to other features and sub combinations. This is contemplatedby and is within the scope of the claims. Since many possibleembodiments of the invention may be made without departing from thescope thereof, it is also to be understood that all matters herein setforth or shown in the accompanying drawings are to be interpreted asillustrative and not limiting.

The constructions described above and illustrated in the drawings arepresented by way of example only and are not intended to limit theconcepts and principles of the present invention. As used herein, theterms “having” and/or “including” and other terms of inclusion are termsindicative of inclusion rather than requirement.

While the invention has been described with reference to preferredembodiments, it will be understood by those skilled in the art thatvarious changes may be made and equivalents may be substituted forelements thereof to adapt to particular situations without departingfrom the scope of the invention. Therefore, it is intended that theinvention not be limited to the particular embodiments disclosed as thebest mode contemplated for carrying out this invention, but that theinvention will include all embodiments falling within the scope andspirit of the appended claims.

What is claimed is:
 1. A method for secure payment transactions over anetwork between a support help desk computing system and a customercomputing system, the method comprising: establishing a chat sessionbetween the support help desk computing system and the customercomputing system through the network using a chat application program;receiving a purchase order from the customer computing system during thechat session; communicating a unique Uniform Resource Locator (URL)payment link to the customer computing system during the chat session inresponse to receipt of the purchase order, wherein the URL payment linkis configured for allowing the customer computing system to establishcommunication with an order processing system over the network toprovide sensitive payment information to the order processing system,wherein the sensitive payment information is provided in associationwith the purchase order; receiving the sensitive payment information atthe order processing system communicated from the customer computingdevice; encrypting the sensitive payment information; providing theencrypted sensitive payment information to the support help deskcomputing system, wherein the encrypted sensitive payment information isdisplayed in a masked format on a display of the support help deskcomputing system; and completing the purchase order using the encryptedsensitive payment information.
 2. A method in accordance with claim 1,wherein the purchase order is a request to purchase at least one of aproduct or a service.
 3. A method in accordance with claim 1, whereinthe sensitive payment information includes credit card information.
 4. Amethod in accordance with claim 1, wherein credit card informationincludes at least one of a credit card number, credit card expirationdate, and a three-digit security code.
 5. A method in accordance withclaim 1, wherein sensitive payment information includes at least one ofa social security number, bank account number, or bank account routingnumber.
 6. A method in accordance with claim 1, further comprising thestep of receiving non-sensitive payment information from the customercomputing system during the chat session in response to the purchaseorder.
 7. A method in accordance with claim 6, wherein non-sensitivepersonal information includes at least one of a customer name, mailingaddress, billing address, or email address.
 8. A method in accordancewith claim 7, wherein the purchase order is completed using thesensitive and non-sensitive payment information.
 9. A method inaccordance with claim 1, wherein the sensitive payment information isencrypted using the order processing system.
 10. A method in accordancewith claim 1, wherein the masked format includes representing thesensitive payment information as one or more asterisks.
 11. A method inaccordance with claim 1, wherein the support help desk computing systemand the order processing system are controlled by the same businessentity.
 12. A method in accordance with claim 1, wherein the supporthelp desk computing system and the order processing system arecontrolled by different business entities.
 13. A method in accordancewith claim 1, wherein the support help desk computing system receivesthe URL payment link from the order processing system over the network.14. A method for secure payment transactions over a network between asupport help desk computing system and a customer computing system, themethod comprising: establishing a chat session between the support helpdesk computing system and the customer computing system through thenetwork using a chat application program; receiving a purchase orderfrom the customer computing system during the chat session, wherein thepurchase order is a request to purchase at least one of a product or aservice; receiving non-sensitive payment information from the customercomputing system during the chat session in response to the purchaseorder, wherein the non-sensitive personal information includes at leastone of a customer name, mailing address, billing address, or emailaddress; requesting a unique Uniform Resource Locator (URL) payment linkfrom the order processing system in response to the purchase order,wherein the URL payment link is configured for allowing the customercomputing system to establish communication with an order processingsystem over the network to provide sensitive payment information to theorder processing system, wherein the sensitive payment informationincludes at least one of credit card information, social securitynumber, bank account number, or bank account routing number; obtainingthe URL payment link from the order processing system; communicating theURL payment link to the customer computing system during the chatsession; receiving the sensitive payment information at the orderprocessing system communicated from the customer computing device;encrypting the sensitive payment information using the order processingsystem; providing the encrypted sensitive payment information to thesupport help desk computing system, wherein the encrypted sensitivepayment information is displayed in a masked format on a display of thesupport help desk computing system; and completing the purchase orderusing the non-sensitive and sensitive payment information.
 15. A methodin accordance with claim 14, wherein the support help desk computingsystem and the order processing system are controlled by the samebusiness entity.
 16. A method in accordance with claim 14, wherein thesupport help desk computing system and the order processing system arecontrolled by different business entities.
 17. A support help deskcomputing system for providing a secure payment transaction during achat session with a customer computing device, the system comprising: achat application program configured for establishing a chat session withthe customer computing device over a network, wherein the chatapplication program is configured for receiving a purchase order fromthe customer computing system during the chat session; an orderprocessing system configured for generating a unique Uniform ResourceLocator (URL) payment link in association with the purchase order forcommunication to the customer computing device during the chat sessionusing the chat application program, wherein the URL payment link isconfigured for allowing the customer computing system to establishcommunication with the order processing system over the network toprovide sensitive payment information to the order processing system,wherein the sensitive payment information is provided in associationwith the purchase order, wherein the order processing system isconfigured for encrypting the sensitive payment information; and adisplay, wherein the order processing system is configured fordisplaying the encrypted sensitive payment information in a maskedformat on the display, and wherein order processing system is configuredfor completing the purchase order using the encrypted sensitive paymentinformation.
 18. A system in accordance with claim 17, wherein thepurchase order is a request to purchase at least one of a product or aservice.
 19. A system in accordance with claim 17, wherein the sensitivepayment information includes credit card information, wherein creditcard information includes at least one of a credit card number, creditcard expiration date, and a three-digit security code.
 20. A system inaccordance with claim 17, wherein sensitive payment information includesat least one of a social security number, bank account number, or bankaccount routing number.
 21. A system in accordance with claim 17,wherein the chat application program is configured for receivingnon-sensitive information from the customer computing system during thechat session in response to the purchase order, and displaying thenon-sensitive information on the display, wherein non-sensitive personalinformation includes at least one of a customer name, mailing address,billing address, or email address.
 22. A system in accordance with claim21, wherein the order processing system is configured for completing thepurchase order using the sensitive and non-sensitive paymentinformation.
 23. A system in accordance with claim 17, wherein themasked format includes representing the sensitive payment information asone or more asterisks.